Editor's Picks category, Page 234
Indiana Township wows young kids with its first-ever ‘Touch-a-Truck’ event
Indiana Township firefighter Mike Klier had a message Saturday morning for 4-year-old Gia Chanampa as he handed her a yellow, plastic firefighters helmet from his firetruck. “You’ve gotta drink your milk and eat your vegetables if you want to be a firefighter,” said Klier, 59, a Shaler resident who responds...
All paws on deck at new Lower Burrell pet grooming collaborative
The layout of Kelly Campana’s dog grooming business is reminiscent of a tattoo parlor. Her space — Muddy Paws Pet Grooming — occupies the front of the shop. Next to her is a booth for Kaylee Zaremba’s business, Pooches on Point. Across from them is a space for the SWAG...
Time-honored tradition: Yough students drive tractors to school
Several Yough Senior High students carried on a time-honored tradition Friday as they drove various makes of farm tractors to the school on Lowber Road in Sewickley Township to celebrate the end of the year. Though not a district-sanctioned event, students bring their tractors to school one Friday each spring...
Wrestling’s ‘Superstar’ Billy Graham, the template for Hulk Hogan, dies at 79
“I lift barbell plates. I eat T-bone steaks. I’m sweeter than a German chocolate cake. How much more of me can you take?” When you discuss the hyperbolized figures in pro wrestling history, “Superstar” Billy Graham has to be in the conversation. He was supposed to be a reviled rulebreaker,...
5 things to do in Pittsburgh this weekend: May 19-21
The weekend has arrived. Here are some ways to spend it. Pink walk The Susan G. Komen More Than Pink Walk is on Sunday at Schenley Park. The opening ceremony is at 9 a.m. The walk begins at 9:30 a.m. on Panther Hollow Road. It will be a 2.5-mile loop...
Aquinas 3rd grader takes Greensburg Rotary Spelling Bee crown
Alexis Kost, a third grader from Metzgar Elementary School, revealed a hidden talent to her family when she conquered a written spelling test and a classroom spelling competition to earn an invitation to the Rotary Spelling Bee. The competition was sponsored by the Rotary Club of Greensburg for the 15th...
Lake Erie on its way to becoming national marine sanctuary
HARRISBURG — President Joe Biden’s administration took the first step Thursday toward designating the Pennsylvania-owned section of Lake Erie as the state’s first national marine sanctuary. A formal designation could take several years, and it wouldn’t change existing regulations around the use of the lake. The announcement sets up a...
TV Talk: Ming-Na Wen voices character in ‘Gremlins’ series; ABC, CW set fall scheduleVideo
Actress Ming-Na Wen, who grew up in Mt. Lebanon and graduated from Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Drama, said she was drawn to a voice acting role in the animated prequel series “Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai” by her love of sci-fi and the show’s 1920s setting. The series uses...
5 things to do in Westmoreland County this weekend: May 19-21
Retro rock Rock all the way back to the ‘90s with two tribute shows this weekend at The Lamp Theatre, 222 Main St., Irwin. • Best of Foo: Tribute to the Foo Fighters, 8 p.m. Friday. • Lounge Fly: A Tribute to Stone Temple Pilots, 8 p.m. Saturday. A ticket...
Cemetery cleanup in McCandless uncovers forgotten past
Hidden beneath brush and dirt was the gravestone of Capt. Moses M. Warrick, 1884 to 1932, a fire marshal of Engine 38 in the City of Pittsburgh who was also a veteran of WWI and lived with his family in the Hill District. Another grave was that of a baby,...
1st full-size 3D scan of Titanic shows shipwreck in new lightVideo
LONDON — Deep-sea researchers have completed the first full-size digital scan of the Titanic, showing the entire wreck in unprecedented detail and clarity, the companies behind a new documentary on the wreck said Thursday. Using two remotely operated submersibles, a team of researchers spent six weeks last summer in the...
San Francisco to name 1st-in-nation drag laureate
SAN FRANCISCO — Anti-trans legislation is roiling the nation. Bills prohibiting drag performances are cropping up in statehouses. Violence and vitriol are turning children’s drag story hour events into headline-news protests. San Francisco is fighting back Thursday by naming the nation’s first drag laureate, an ambassador-style position designed to represent...
Oscar Mayer’s iconic Weinermobile gets a new name
The iconic Weinermobile is no more. The hot dog on wheels is going by a new name — Frankmobile. Oscar Mayer announced the name change Wednesday in conjunction with the debut of a hot dog recipe, according to a news release. Known as Weinermobiles since they first hit roads in...
TV Talk: Soaring fights, searing drama make all-family series ‘American Born Chinese’ a best betVideo
Based on the graphic novel by Gene Luen Yang, the Disney+ series “American Born Chinese” proves to be one of the year’s best surprises. A coming-of-age story that at times brings to mind TV greats “My So-Called Life” (though this one is from a boy’s perspective) and “Freaks and Geeks,”...
Blink-182 brings wild ‘Rock Show’ to PPG Paints Arena
Blink-182 might have grown older over the years, but they sure haven’t grown up. Despite enduring over the past eight years, among other things, a cancer scare, a departure and subsequent reunion with a founding member, and the scrutiny from marrying into a celebrity family, the pop-punk stalwarts are still...
Man indicted in theft of ‘Wizard of Oz’ ruby slippers worn by Judy GarlandVideo
A man has been indicted by a grand jury on charges of stealing a pair of ruby red slippers worn by Judy Garland in “The Wizard of Oz,” federal prosecutors in North Dakota say. The shoes were stolen in 2005 and recovered in a 2018 FBI sting operation, but no...
1,100-year-old Hebrew Bible sells for $38 million at New York auctionVideo
NEW YORK — A 1,100-year-old Hebrew Bible that is one of the world’s oldest surviving biblical manuscripts sold Wednesday for $38 million in New York. The Codex Sassoon, a leather-bound, handwritten parchment volume containing a nearly complete Hebrew Bible, was purchased by former U.S. Ambassador to Romania Alfred H. Moses...
Taylor Swift calls Philadelphia shows ‘a dream’
Berks County native Taylor Swift let her fans know exactly how it felt to sell out three nights of concerts in Philadelphia. Taking to social media on Tuesday, the singer revealed how much of “a dream” it was to perform at the Lincoln Financial Field while on her Eras Tour,...
Prince Harry, Meghan involved in car chase while being followed by photographers
NEW YORK — Prince Harry and his wife, Meghan, were pursued in their car by photographers after a charity event in New York, an injury-free incident that the mayor and the couple’s office described Wednesday as potentially dangerous and that stirred memories of the 1997 car crash that killed Harry’s...
New Heinz machine will let users craft their own sauces
Mixing condiments is getting easier with a digital customizable sauce dispenser unveiled Wednesday by Kraft Heinz Company. The Heinz Remix machine can create more than 200 potential sauce combinations through a touchscreen that allows consumers to select from a range of flavors and intensities. The base sauces are Heinz Ketchup,...
Steelers great Franco Harris gets hometown street renamed in his honor
Black and Gold infiltrated a New Jersey town Tuesday as a street there was named after late Pittsburgh Steelers running back Franco Harris. A street in Mount Holly, Harris’ hometown, is now named Franco Harris Way. WPVI-TV in Philadelphia reported that Harris grew up on the road, which before Tuesday...
TV Q&A: Why no substitute when one of the WTAE morning anchors is absent?
Q: For more than a year, WTAE-TV has used three anchors on its morning newscasts and when one of the anchors is off, they never use a substitute anchor in order to keep three people at the anchor desk at any one time. Why don’t they ever use a substitute...
Surfing gator seen relaxing at Alabama beach amid the wavesVideo
There are plenty of alligators in Alabama. But how many enjoy a day at the beach? One such unlikely critter was spotted riding the waves recently on Dauphin Island, bobbing calmly near the human beachgoers sunbathing and wading. Matt Harvill, a 27-year-old Mobile resident, came across the lengthy gator on...
‘Taco Tuesday’ trademark tiff flares anew between fast food competitors
CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Declaring a mission to liberate “Taco Tuesday” for all, Taco Bell is asking U.S. regulators to force Wyoming-based Taco John’s to abandon its longstanding claim to the trademark. Too many businesses and others refer to “Taco Tuesday” for Taco John’s to be able to have exclusive rights...
Aubrey Burchell appears in ‘America’s Got Talent’ Las Vegas show
The call finally came for Aubrey Burchell. Following her run to the semifinals of “America’s Got Talent” in September, the North Huntingdon singer was contracted to perform in “America’s Got Talent Presents Super Stars Live” at the Luxor Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas as an on-call, as-needed performer for...
